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Stefanie Oddo 鈥�08, MS 鈥�10, had found her ideal job: teaching science to middle school students in the same school in Great Neck, New York, where she had excelled as a student.

When the Great Neck school district mandated that middle school teachers must acquire advanced certification, Ms. Oddo did not hesitate to return to her alma mater, .

Ms. Oddo enrolled in a two-course, 6-credit program to acquire a at Adelphi in the summer of 2013. The hybrid program (classroom instruction and online training) will be offered in the Spring 2014 semester at Garden City or Manhattan Center and in Summer 2014 at Manhattan Center.

鈥淚 would recommend Adelphi because the program is all about teaching you what you need to know to get the certificate,鈥� said Ms. Oddo, who had earned a BS in and an MS in at Adelphi before getting the advanced certificate. 鈥淥ther schools will give you the courses, but it doesn鈥檛 lead to getting the certificate you need.鈥�

Adelphi鈥檚 program examines the rich and complex (but never boring) life of the adolescent and is designed for both adolescent and elementary educators and majors. The program covers the many dimensions of the adolescent experience鈥攇ender; sexuality; intellectual, emotional and ethical growth; and political and social development. Content areas include chemistry, biology, earth science, English, math, physics, foreign language and history (social studies).

鈥淪tudents in each course gather together five or six times throughout the semester for face-to-face interactions,鈥� said Tracy Hogan, PhD, associate professor of science education and the program director. 鈥淓xtended discussions and additional learning activities are supported through online platforms.鈥�

鈥淒r. Hogan brought in teachers and other students who taught us what was really going on in middle school education,鈥� Ms. Oddo said. 鈥淪he pulled ideas and concepts from real life. It wasn鈥檛 just textbooks. She gave us real-life experience in the classroom.鈥�

The Adelphi program in the is open to students currently certified or working toward attaining certification in childhood or adolescent education. Students must have completed at least 30 credits in one content area.

鈥淲e鈥檝e really structured the program to fit the schedule of the teachers,鈥� said , director of education at Manhattan Center. 鈥淐lasses are in the late afternoon, so teachers can use some of the ideas they learn here in their own classroom.鈥�

Nationally, there is a need for more teachers in grades 5鈥�9. The percentage of middle school teachers is expected to grow by 17 percent by the end of the decade, according to the . During the same time period, the percentage of high school teachers is expected to grow by seven percent.

鈥淭eaching middle school students can be a challenge because it鈥檚 such a transition period for them,鈥� said Ms. Oddo, who has also taught high school biology in Merrick, New York. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e going from very young people to high school students, young adults. It can be a tough group to teach. But I prefer teaching middle school students.鈥�

Acquiring the Middle School Education Advanced Certificate at Adelphi has enabled Ms. Oddo to do just that.